As the gym manager and head coach at CrossFit Dayton, he wants the athletes he works with to set goals, review them and revise them.
Through their workouts and the community that the gym has built, Harman said that they can accomplish goals that they didn’t expect to meet, or do faster than they anticipated.
“I’m here to help people tap into things they didn’t think they could,” he said. “I want people to be healthy and fitter, and that’s our whole goal here.”
Harman, 48, has held the position for two years this summer, starting just after Ashley Webb took over ownership of the gym and began looking for someone to oversee the day-to-day operations. Harman had already been a personal trainer for more than a decade and knew how to connect with others, said Webb, who nominated Harman as a Dayton Daily News Community Gem.
Harman helps others become the best version of themselves, he said.
“The No. 1 goal is to get people in the door, feel welcome and understand they can do this,” said Webb, who also is the president of Vulcan Tool Company.
Harman’s impact ripples throughout the gym, he said, in the coaches he interacts with, the programming he oversees and the athletes he motivates. The gym has about 75 member athletes, and Harman helps with more than just their physical development.
“It’s also the mental aspect of setting a goal and making progress toward that goal,” Webb said.
Those who can push through the mental aspect of the workout can use that mental strength to accomplish other things that they didn’t think they could do, Harman said.
Harman, of Kettering, was introduced to CrossFit in his early 30s, as a soldier in the U.S. Army. After a deployment to Iraq, he was stationed at Fort Sill, in Oklahoma, where his first CrossFit workout was one called Fight Gone Bad.
“When I got done with that workout, I was hooked,” he said.
The Dayton gym, located at 150 S. Patterson Blvd., Suite B, offers five classes each weekday, starting between 5:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. It also offers a free 8:30 a.m. Saturday class each week that is open to the public. That class, which generally attracts 15 to 30 people, is more team-focused and is a good introduction to CrossFit, Harman said.
The goals of those who join the gym are varied, from aiming to attend classes twice a week, to wanting to perform handstand walks or to running a race. Harman helps them find a way to set and meet their goals inside or outside of the gym.
Harman praised the gym’s community, adding that many regulars have made great friends there. He wants to help all visitors to the gym become healthier, with a good support system.
“The athletes are always first,” Harman said.
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